


Not So Unrequited Love : A Nishinoya Reader Insert

by JustAWriterBee



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Childhood Friends, College, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Other, Reader-Insert, Self-Insert
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:01:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24460213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAWriterBee/pseuds/JustAWriterBee
Summary: Nishinoya suggested you rent an apartment together, because why not? You basically grew up together, it’s cheaper and better than staying in the dorms, what’s not to like? Only now, you’re spending just about every waking moment together and it is getting harder and harder for Nishinoya to act like he’s not in love with you, and you with him. He’s grateful for the upcoming reprieve of a month-long training camp with the volleyball club, nervous too, of course, but grateful. Maybe he can get his head on straight or work up the courage to tell you how he feels.
Relationships: Nishinoya Yuu/Reader, Nishinoya Yuu/You
Comments: 4
Kudos: 98





	Not So Unrequited Love : A Nishinoya Reader Insert

Nishinoya had known he was in love with you for as long as he could remember. He knew when you were 6 and he was 8, you fell off the slide at the playground and he was the only one who noticed. You held out your hand and asked him to kiss your ouchie, a scrape on your palm.  
He did, happily, and walked you hand in hand to your mother. You intertwined your fingers with his so easily, like it was the only thing to do, and you smiled up at him with a smile like the sun. He knew then.  
He was reminded when you were 11 and he was 13 when you offered him half of your cookie because he dropped his. It was your favorite kind and you didn’t even hesitate. Of course, you should give him part of your cookie. It was only fair.  
And again, when you were 16 and he was 18 and about to graduate high school and he failed his college entrance exam. You promised him it didn’t matter, that he would pass the next time for sure, you would help with anything you could, and he would get into the volleyball club. He was the best libero ever, nobody could turn him down!  
He did pass the next year, and he did make the team. Just like you said he would.

You knew you were in love with Nishinoya in your first year of high school when he showed you around the whole school and introduced you to his entire volleyball team like you were the most important person that had ever graced the gym. He held your hand and acted like he didn’t even notice the side eyes and half-hidden snickers of his teammates. But he had always been that way. Other people’s opinions or assumptions never bothered him.  
They bothered you though. You were already turning pink across your cheeks and the bridge of your nose, even though you’d held his hand for years. Why did it matter now? Was it the audience?  
Nishinoya squeezed your hand in his, bringing you back to the present because someone had just asked you a question and you hadn’t heard a word. “Oh yeah,” he’d answered for you, “they were on their middle school’s soccer team! I bet our team already has a jersey with their name on it!” He continued on, saying something about your last game. You figured they had asked if you were going to join a club, but it didn’t matter. Not in the wake of Nishinoya talking about you like you had hung the moon. When did that happen? Did he always smile like that? Was it always so breathtaking?  
All too soon, his practice was starting, and you had to let him go. Your hand burned like you’d held fire, and in some ways, maybe you had. Watching him walk away, you knew then.

But, as it often does, your love went unsaid. You were both too afraid of the other not feeling the same, and he couldn't risk your friendship. You didn't want to confess, because, knowing Nishi, he would want to try and stay friends, and you didn't know if you could handle him knowing and ignoring it.  
So the years go by, and you, on accident, _obviously_ , go to the same college as him. Then, Nishinoya suggested you rent an apartment together, because why not? You basically grew up together, it’s cheaper and better than staying in the dorms, what’s not to like?  
Only now, you’re spending just about every waking moment together and it is getting harder and harder for Nishinoya to act like he’s not in love with you, and you with him. He’s grateful for the upcoming reprieve of a month-long training camp with the volleyball club, nervous too, of course, but grateful. Maybe he can get his head on straight or work up the courage to tell you how he feels. Most likely the former, but you never know.

You, on the other hand, were not excited about being alone in your shared apartment for the first time in almost a year. Not for fear of your safety, no. Because it’ll be silent. You won’t wake up to Nishi bouncing a volleyball on his fingertips so he can get better at his sets, or his breathing so loud it might as well be snoring, or the sound of breakfast cooking on a Saturday morning. Which you help with, always, he just tends to start without you, and that’s fine. He isn’t much of a morning person otherwise, but he never misses a Saturday. Well, he hadn't until now, anyway.

—

It was Friday evening, and Nishinoya had left for his training camp four hours prior. He had texted shortly afterward, that he was on the bus and wanted to take a nap but would text again when he got there.  
It was a two-hour drive, he should have been there by now. Maybe he just didn’t have time, and that was fine, you thought. You’d just have to make yourself busy, and he would definitely call the next day, at least. It was Saturday, after all.  
You spent the evening tidying up the apartment and working on homework, trying to keep yourself busy. Only, tidying up and homework don’t last forever. It got to the point that you had wiped down every surface you could reach, and it was still only 8 PM. Not really time for bed, but not early enough to start a new movie or get into a game before you would be tired.  
You found yourself wandering into Nishinoya’s room, to grab his laundry so it would be ready to do the next day. Not to grab his comforter so you could sleep with it and smell him and feel like he was still there, absolutely not. You lifted his laundry basket to your hip and exited the room, one stray comforter corner dragging the floor.  
When both baskets of laundry, yours and his, were set out to be done, you flopped onto the couch, wrapped up like a burrito. Grabbing the tv remote, you turned on a show you’d seen before, just something to make noise while you laid there.  
You kept checking your phone every few minutes, hoping his name would pop up and disappointing yourself every time. He was busy. It had only been a few hours. He would answer when he had time, you weren’t his partner or anything.

—

Nishinoya couldn’t quite figure out what he had done wrong. He’d texted you to let you know he’d made it to his training camp, and that they were going to practice a little before they had dinner as a group, so he’d be busy but would answer you when he could. And yet, nothing all evening.  
His captain kept looking at him like he had something on his face, and one of his teammates asked him if he was okay. Jeez, was he really so heart on his sleeve that they could tell he was put out?  
“Yeah of course I’m okay, just tired!” He answered, waving a hand like they nothing to worry about. Maybe he was in more trouble than he thought, and this training camp had come at just the right time.  
He waited to text again until they got back from dinner, around 9:30. He didn’t want to seem too clingy. It was the first day he was gone, after all.  
Opening your text thread, he realized his mistake. In his excitement, he typed the text and hadn’t hit send, leaving you waiting for his response. Well, _shit_. 

_Hey, I am SO sorry. I forgot to hit send earlier! I made it safe and we even already had practice! I’ll talk to you tomorrow! :)_

—

“Okay mom, I gotta go, Nishi’s gonna be back any time now! Yes yes, I’ll tell him you said hi. Uh-huh. Yup, I’ll tell you how his camp went. Alright, I love you too!”  
You tossed your phone on the couch and shook your arms to try and clear away the jitters. It didn’t help. It had been a whole month since you saw the spiky-haired boy, and even though you spoke two or three times a week, it still felt like ages. The apartment was damn near sparkling clean, and dinner was just about finished. Now you just needed Nishi to walk through the door and everything would be perfect. Only, it took him much longer to get home than you expected.

Nishinoya adjusted his duffel bag on his shoulder and pulled out his house key, twisting it in the lock. He paused before he opened it, taking a deep breath to settle his nerves. Over the course of the training camp, he had gotten stronger. Physically, but he’d also steeled himself to finally tell you how he felt. Come hell or high water, it needed to be said. He couldn’t keep tiptoeing around his feelings. And if you didn’t want to be friends anymore, he’d made plans to move in with a teammate until he could find his own place. He would pay his half of the rent, of course, he’d never leave you hanging like that.  
Pushing the door open, he dropped his bag on the floor and kicked off his shoes. He closed the door behind him, taking in the apartment and the already plated dinner, but you were nowhere to be seen. You would have told him if you were going to be out, so you had to be there somewhere. He walked around the couch and there you were, sprawled out under his comforter. Well. _That’s_ new.  
Crouching in front of you, Nishinoya carefully shook your shoulder. Enough to wake you up, but not so much it would shock you. His face split into a grin when your eyes fluttered open and you mumbled a greeting that was lost in a yawn and a stretch.”  
“Hey, sleepyhead. Have a good nap?” He teased, his heart beginning an unsteady pounding at what he was planning.  
“Yes, sorry. I missed you,” You answered, pushing yourself into a seated position, adjusting the blanket around you. You were suddenly very awake because there was Nishi, and here was his blanket and he was going to notice. Your cheeks flushed with heat, and dammit. Now there’s no way he wouldn’t notice.  
Nishinoya couldn’t help a laugh at the face you were pulling and the very obvious blush. He shifted onto his knees and pulled you into a hug, hoping you couldn’t feel his heart racing. You hoped the same, but honestly, with the blush, it was a little late for that.  
“Seems like you missed me a lot,” he tilted his head at his blanket, “but that’s okay. I missed you a lot too.” He sat back until he could see your face, keeping one hand on the couch and the other on your knee. It was now or never. He didn’t want to drag it out any longer.  
You could tell something was on his mind. The way he spoke, the way his hug was a little stiff, the resolve in his gaze. Maybe he’d met a girl at the camp and he was going to tell you about it. Or he wanted to move out. Or both!  
“I have a crush on you. I have as long as I can remember.” It was such a relief to get the words out. You looked shocked, but not upset or unhappy, so he forged on. “I realized when I was gone that I didn’t want to come back and let things go back to normal. I started dreaming about you a week and a half in. Nothing gross I swear! Just you, around the apartment, doing homework, or hanging out. But, anyway.  
"I didn’t want to say anything before this because I didn’t want to lose you. But I can’t keep hiding it anymore,” Nishinoya let out a big sigh before continuing, not really registering your reactions anymore, “I understand if you don’t want me to live here anymore. I have my living situa-“  
You cut off his speech by throwing yourself off the couch and into his arms. Which probably knocked the wind out of him, judging by the thump his back made when it hit the floor.  
“No, I don’t want you to move out!” He took a second to register his new position and the words you’d just said before propping himself up on his elbows to look you in the eyes. They looked red, was that because you were going to cry? A good cry, or a bad cry?  
“You don’t? It won’t make you uncomfortable, having me here still?” He wasn’t wrong, you were about to cry. He was confessing to you! And it was the good kind! He felt the same way, and he liked you for even longer than you had liked him! Somehow, that made you feel better and worse. How had you missed that?  
Shaking your head in both an answer to his question and a way to bring you back to the moment, you finally noticed how awkwardly you had landed on him. Your head was about chest level, his left thigh between your legs, and the blanket was trapped in the middle.  
“No of course not. I’d be dumb to be uncomfortable around my boyfriend, wouldn’t I?” You answered, going for teasing and confident but it came out shaky from the tightness in your throat. You had started crying some time between his question and your answer, apparently. You didn’t notice the tears until they made dark splatters on his white shirt. Nishinoya sat up quickly, bringing you up with him so you were kneeling over his leg and just about eye to eye.  
“I guess that would be pretty dumb.” He brought a hand up to your face, wiping a tear away with his thumb. He was so close, you might as well be sharing the same air. You couldn’t help a nervous laugh escaping, not sure where to go from there. Nishinoya had no such problem. “Can.. can I kiss you?” He whispered, his thumb following his eyes as they moved across your bottom lip. Your heart stopped at the drag of his calloused skin and restarted at a breakneck pace when his eyes caught yours.  
“Please.” He wasted no time, closing the short distance until nothing but a hairsbreadth separated your lips from his. You tilted your head up the last bit to get your lips on his. His lips were dry and a little chapped but that was exactly what you expected. His hand pressed a little more firmly into your jaw, keeping you close but not pushing any further.  
When you finally broke apart, you couldn’t fight the smile overwhelming you. All these years and all it took was a training camp to make him realize he was absolutely in love with you and didn’t want to spend a minute more pretending he wasn’t.  
“You know, I think the boys have a bet on us. And I think the captain just won.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is my very first published Fic and It is absolutely self indulgent fluff. Also, I'm sorry if Noya is a little OOC, I was struggling to get a handle on his voice.  
> Please let me know what you think, and thanks for reading!


End file.
